vacancy

take this place
that opened in me
like the sky,
blue, so blue,
impatient, empty 
of clouds, a sun;
fill this space
I once welcomed,
give it shape,
a beating heart
to cling to

now there’s room
I no longer
want it empty,
turning and turning,
from one wall 
back to another,
asking of each,
is it you?
will it be now,
or once again?
can we recover
all that was lost? 

but at the point
of my concession,
reaching out
across a void,
I stop, wavering,
on the threshold-
held by loss,
regrets, reprisals,
unwelcome tenants
reminding me, 
what lives within
has its reasons

still no hand
reaches back
toward my own,
no one knocks
or quietly calls out,
yes, here, now;
so I linger, waiting,
caught inside
this room I made,
watching the door,
hoping its locked,
keeping it ready

If you liked this poem, please read through my poetry collection. You can also purchase my book, Gone to Ground: Selected Poems & Essays, available on Amazon.com or through your local bookstore.